I'm your greeter. Larry tells me you
are here to see a few scenes of past meetings.

Well, that is why I'm your greeter and that's why I look like I do. I AM a scene from a past meeting.
If you were present for our "Halloween Theme Meeting," that's where we met.

Valley Toastmasters has been meeting in the cafeteria of the Valley Cathedral
Audio Console ever since the club chartered---almost 15 years ago. We'll celebrate our 16th Anniversary next April. We meet every week on Thursdays, 6:15 a.m., at 6225 North Central Avenue, Phoenix. Arizona.

Our meeting area looks something like this: ---at least that is the way our artistic minded graphics editor likes to see it.

The club uses a theme idea for its meetings each week. The theme is usually the focus of discussion during Table Topics. If you are not familiar with Toastmasters, Table Topics is a one minute exercise in speaking extemporaneously. Sometimes a creative touch is added to the program by expanding the theme visually. Katheleen, for example, pasted newspapers around the lectern when she was the Table Topics Master of a "news" theme meeting recently.

Kathleen's at the lectern. Donna, one of our new members, is shown considering her response to the Table Topics question posed by Kathleen.

Once in a while, at Halloween last year for example,
the theme becomes a full scale affair with room decorations, special food dishes or treats,
and in this case, a costume contest.

However, for the better part of the year, we are rather sane--but fun.
(These are the contest winners. You can find out what they won when you look through the
December Newsletter.)

We use a "Word of the Day" at meetings to expand our word usage.
Each member is encouraged to use it appropriately each time they speak. The person responsible for selecting the word is the "Word Master." We've had some good ones---but Brian may have been the best. His idea was---the more attention it gets, the more likely it will be used.

Brian Manderfield, a member who moved east to accept a promotion with the Boys and Girls Club of America, liked to dramatize his choices. He is the only member in the history of the club to utilize 20-25 feet to display his "word of the day." That's Brian in the middle

This is another sample of Brian's "Word of the Day" creativeness. He definitely influenced our attitude towards the value of preparation in a functionary's duties.

Kathryn prepared a mirror image of her "Word of the Day" for a "backwards" meeting.

And in a time where "abuse" is an often used work, Bob Drevitson introduced the word "disabuse."

Quite a few of our members have dropped use of

those unconscious "Ah's" and our grammarians have started focusing on unnecessary phrases, cliche's and the like. The most frequent phrase we use (and it appears to be one of the hardest habits to break) is "I would like to..." A nearby club attacked that same problem with an imaginative award---the "Wood 2."

The club has three speakers at each meeting who are
assigned by the Educational Vice President to do a manual objective speech.
Assignments are rotated equally among the membership.

In our photo album we have a picture of Dan Barnard, who, for his "show what you mean speech" used a cardboard cutout to show the real-life Blue Marlin which he caught in the San Carlos Bay on the Sea of Cortez.

Wayne Church is one of our experienced members and an accomplished speaker. He has earned Toastmasters' "ATM-Silver" designation, which, he says, required 60 Toastmaster manual speeches plus several speeches to non-Toastmaster groups. He brings to the lectern a sense of professionalism which helps give direction to many of us. Here, Wayne is pictured presenting his most recent speech from the advanced manual "The Professional Salesperson"---the objective was to make a sales presentation.

Connie Kadansky, CTM, chose "Food Fitness" as her subject for an advanced manual "demonstration" speech. She and her husband, Jerry, have adopted a "We have been living to eat. Now we chose to eat to live" theme, she said. "Here is a simple test to determine fit food. What you can wash you can eat," she said as she demonstrated the washing technique on several food items, including Jerry's favorite chocolate covered donut.

Tim Ducar, an attorney giving his second speech, recreated a Phoenix City Council presentation at which he requested a cul-de-sac installation to protect his and other children on the block from reckless drive though traffic.

(Ed. note: Your meetings tour, up to this point, has been lead by Tracy.
She didn't mention it, but we also have in our photo album this picture from a speech in which she retold of her experiences while learning to sky dive. It was used for the cover of our newsletter with this headline:

Tracy Altmus, CTM, lets go at 3500 feet above the
desert floor for her second Advanced
Storytelling manual speech.

No, we haven't met
---at least, not like this.

I agreed to do
this for one appearance only. And this is it! Tracy had to leave to greet new arrivals.

A major and valuable element of a Toastmasters meeting---evaluations--- has not yet been mentioned. According to the founder of Toastmasters International, Dr. Ralph Smedley, we are able to improve our abilities to communicate effectively when we are able to receive feedback on our presentation.

Each speaker is assigned a member who provides that feedback based on the speaker's manual objectives. In addition to the formal evaluation, each member prepares a brief written form of feedback. When you get tips on your presentation's strong points and suggestions on how it might be better next time, it doesn't take long to begin showing great signs of improvement.

Now, I know you want to continue your tour of our home page.
So, let's go! If you are not a Toastmaster, you'll want to check out the information for guests.
If you are, your next stop, if you haven't been there already, is our web newsletter.

If you have run ahead and want to
jump about on your own---start clicking.

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